Today’s Music Briefing: Mid-Year Sales, NIN, Guitar Hero & More

> Thanks to a 30% rise in digital, overall music sales are down only 11% in the first 6 months of the year compared to 15% drop last year. (Billboard Mid-Year Sales)

> iHipHop has launches as an online community offering hip hop music, videos, news, forums, commerce and social networking tools. Formerly crackspace.com, iHipHop launches with almost 800,000 users.

> Nine Inch Nails is once again using TuneCore to deliver their music to online retailers. The band’s new album, ‘Slip,’ will be made available digitally via TuneCore at iTunes and AmazonMP3.

> UK youth pop culture hub SuperSweet has added a digital music store and fashion shop.

> Album release partnerships as a promo strategy for music sites. (cNet)

> Analysis: Will Guitar Hero Save The Music Industry? (DMW)

> Razor & Tie pacts with manger Gary Gersh’s ATO for an indie imprint. (FMQB)